The PUC's New Gig

Pennsylvania’s impending impact fee provides a big new job for the Public Utility Commission. The regulatory board will administer and collect the per-well levy and set the annual fee rate. It will also have the job of determining  whether or not local drilling zoning is “reasonable.”
The Post-Gazette takes a look at the PUC’s new role:

The agency has about 500 employees, with headquarters in Harrisburg and regional offices in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County. PUC’s five commissioners are appointed by the governor and serve five-year terms, but every office also has administrative law judges on staff who are seen as the most likely candidates to review ordinances.
“We do have an adjudicative role now, and we are used to mediating between two parties,” said Commissioner Pamela Witmer. She said the commission was “certainly appreciative of the confidence” the state has given it.
…Lawmakers allotted $250,000 out of the general state fund to help the PUC incorporate the databases needed to track shale development and are planning additional funding to help pay for personnel.

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